Several circumstances exist under which a horse owner or horse rider may wish to display an item on the tack of his or her horse. For example, displays may be needed or desired for competition in horse shows or exhibitions. Additionally, there is an increasing trend among horse owners and riders to display equine jewelry, representing perhaps a breed logo or a horse or owner name, a monogram, or any decorative design.
An exhibitor or contestant at a horse show receives an exhibitor number tag upon entry into the competition or show. For example, throughout this disclosure and associated drawing figures, the entry number 341 is used on an exhibitor number tag. Such a number identifies both horse and rider in a competition. All scoring by judges is based not on a rider name or a horse name, but rather is based on and recorded by the number printed on the exhibition number tag and displayed on either the horse or the back of the rider. These exhibitor number tags are typically comprised of a number printed on a heavy paper or a cardstock. Some exhibitor number tags are available with pin holes and/or a metal clip located on the back. Depending on the saddle class in which the rider is competing, the exhibitor number tag may be displayed on each side of the horse by pinning it to the saddle pad, saddle blanket, or bridle.
Several concerns exist with the methods currently available for displaying exhibitor number tags. For those placed on the bridle of a horse, the horse may experience discomfort, limited vision, or annoyance at the presence of the exhibitor number tag. For those placed on a saddle pad or saddle blanket, via a means of pinning or otherwise, the exhibitor number tag may flap and cause disturbances for the rider and/or the horse. Additionally, a judge may find it difficult to clearly observe and read a number on the exhibitor number tag if it is freely moving about on the surface to which it is pinned or attached.
A display need exists not only for horse shows and competitions, but also a display need or desire exists to show equine jewelry.
An increasing trend is developing in which horse owners and/or riders wish to display equine jewelry on a horse. Such equine jewelry may include a breed logo; a horse, owner, or stable name; a monogram; or any decorative design. For example, in regard to breed logos, the owner of a Dutch Warmblood may wish to display equine jewelry on the horse tack that is in the shape and form of a standing and roaring lion placed upon a roughly pentagon-shaped shield. Or perhaps the owner of a Swedish Warmblood may wish to display a block-letter “S” with a crown placed upon the top of the “S”. Breed logos are well known in the equine field. Jewelers are incorporating these breed logos into various jewelry pieces that can be displayed on the tack of a horse or elsewhere.
In the prior art, some devices have been disclosed for displaying a number used by a competitor in a horse show. Many such devices still require that the exhibitor number tag be attached via a means of pinning the tag to a saddle pad or clipping it to the bridle worn by the horse, for example. Such devices may be uncomfortable or distracting to the rider or to the horse. In fact, a horse or rider might actually be stuck by a pin while the pinning process is taking place. Furthermore, such devices may not enable a judge to easily and clearly view the number associated with a particular horse and rider.
However, while such devices may be suitable for their particular purposes, they are not suitable for the purposes of the present invention. Therefore, a need exists for a saddle pad display system as is disclosed in the present invention.
These and other problems exist. Previous attempts to solve these and other problems include the following:
U.S. Pat. No. 6,065,273, issued to Schneider on May 23, 2000, discloses a contour English saddle pad having a rear area that is sufficient in size to accommodate an exhibitor number on each side of the pad. Preferably, the rear area of each side of the pad comprises a transparent or translucent, preferably non-glare plastic pocket, into which a card printed with the exhibitor number may be easily inserted and removed. The saddle pad of the invention allows display of the exhibitor number on each side of the horse without detracting from the presentation of the horse and is especially useful in English classes in which conformation is a judging criterion. A major benefit of the saddle pad of the invention, especially in English classes in which multiple horses are exhibited simultaneously, is that the exhibitor's number is continuously displayed within the same field of vision in which the judge evaluates the movement and conformation of the horse, thereby eliminating viewing problems associated with the traditional wearing of the exhibitor number on the rider's back. This disclosed invention, however, may result in the plastic discoloring or cracking over time.
U.S. Design Patent No. Des. 376,226, issued to Podolny on Dec. 3, 1996, discloses the ornamental design for a horse saddle pad with speakers and pockets for carrying a portable cassette or disc player. This disclosed invention, however, is not allowable in competition.
Additionally, there are several products in the marketplace that seek to provide a saddle pad with a competition exhibit entry number. For example, Chick's Discount Saddlery retails a competition fleece pin-on saddle pad, available online at http://www.chicksaddlery.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Product_Code=22P35&Screen=PROD. Yet another example from Texas Equine Saddlery is the English saddle pad with a translucent display number pocket attached on each side of the saddle pad with Velcro® fasteners. This English saddle pad product with display number pockets is available online at http://www.horseselectsales.com/halters.htm.
While these patents and other previous devices and methods have attempted to solve the above mentioned problems, none have provided for a saddle pad display system in the same manner as the present invention. Therefore, a need exists for such a device and method of manufacture.